University of Houston Athletics
Ward Wins Women's Heptathlon At Conference USA Championships
5/14/2004 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field
May 14, 2004
Louisville, Ky. - Despite beginning the second day with a sluggish start, University of Houston All-American Krystal Ward won the women's heptathlon at the Conference USA Championships.
"I had a horrible score, but I came into the meet knowing I was going to have a tough time," Ward said. "I had to take two finals and write a final paper this week. I also knew that I was the leader coming into the championships, and I don't perform as well when I am the favorite. I didn't sleep very well last night because I kept thinking about how I didn't perform very well yesterday."
Despite her struggles, Ward entered the final day as the overall leader with 3,083 points through the first four events. But, she began the second day falling back into fourth place when she scored just 601 points with a mark of 16'10?" (5.15 meters) in the long jump.
"I am not very consistent in the long jump, but I usually perform well in the javelin and 800 meters," Ward said. "I just told myself that I was going to have to go after it and that is what I did."
Ward finished the competition with the best overall performances in the final two events. She scored 661 points with a throw of 130'2" in the javelin for 661 points. She completed the heptathlon with her personal best time of 2:19.64 in the 800-meter run.
Ward ended the second day with 5,173 points to win her second Conference USA heptathlon title in three years. She won the 2002 title before sitting out last season with a broken right foot.
Ashley Wilhelm of Cincinnati was the runner-up with 4,982 points and Louisville's Kelly Faber scored 4,896 points to finish in third place, while Victoria Crawford of Memphis finished in fourth place with 4,849 points. Houston's Nichole Brundage finished in eighth place with 4,553 points.
Women's Heptathlon Scores 1. Krystal Ward, Houston 5,173; 2. Ashley Wilhelm, Cincinnati 4982; 3. Kelly Faber, Louisville 4,896; 4. Victoria Crawford, Memphis 4,849; 5. Judy Shepherd, UAB 4,848; 6. Hope Singleton, Southern Miss 4,748; 7. Ashley Reyer, Southern Miss 4,553; 8. Nichole Brundage, Houston 4,553; 9. Adrienne Duke, UAB 4,465.
